Infant&#39;s diaper



April 8, 1958 F. F. DEXTER 2,829,647

INFANT'S DIAPER y Filed July 26, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 5 fred E Yen/fer27 INVENTOR.V .n

A frog/vf gq April 8, 1958 F. F. DEXTER 2,829,547

INFANT'S DIAPER Filed July 26, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fre d ex e fINVENTOR.

A WOR/vf VJ April 8, 1958 F. F. DEXTER INFANTS DIAPER Filed July 26,1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENToR.

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April 8, 1958 F. F. DEXTER 2,829,647

INFANTS DIAPER Filed July 26, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 IN V EN TOR.

Unite States Patent INFANTS DIAPER Fred F. Dexter, Houston, Tex.

Application July 26, 1954, Serial No. 445,680

4 Claims. (Cl. 128--284) This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in baby diapers.

=`Previlous diapers have failed to provide sufficient absorbency withoutsacricing ease of laundering and/or length of service to a growinginfant. Such diapers, when applied frequently cover or bind the babysstomach to spread harmful moisture to innocent areas and cause harmfulpressures which may hinder digestion and even retard the healthydevelopment of the child. `Such diapers additionally may bind or bow thebabys legs preventing complete comfort and freedom of movement, or mayfit the rectal area so closely as to make babys bowel movementsdifficult. If applied in such a manner as to be loose tting, however,such diapers are not reliable in trapping the bowel waste.

It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide a diaper that isflexible in use and which may be expanded to grow with the baby.

lt is a further object to provide a diaper that is adaptable to thebabys body contour so as to permit greater freedom of leg movement andto obviate any covering or binding of the babys stomach.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a diaper having anatural pocket in the rectal area to permit free bowel move-ment and toreceive waste.

lt is a further object of my invention to provide a diaper whichpresents extra thicknesses of material for additional absorbency whenapplied to the baby without bulk enough to bow the babys legs, and whichmay be washed and dried quickly and easily.

It is a further object of my invention to provide an infants diaperwhich is simple in construction, reliable in use, `and which can bemanufactured economically.

With these objects in mind I have shown and described for purposes ofillustration, several embodiments of my invention, all of which are partof my generic inr ventive concept.

In carrying out my invention l utilize a conventional diaper, which maybe square, rectangular, triangular, trapezoidal or of irregular contour.The central portions of the side edges are folded over in wallet fashionand preferably are releasably secured by fastening means positionedalong the side edges of the diaper. The back and abdomen :covering `endportions are then unfolded to full width so that the diaper as appliedassumes the ygeneral outline of an airplane, with the wings covering thebabys back, the tail section covering the babys lower abdomen and thefuselage of lextra thickness extending between the babys legs. Theinwardly folded side edges present a loose-fitting receptacle or pocketnear the rectal area for the reception of Waste. The pocket furtherserves as a receptacle for a pad formed, for example, by folding asecond diaper, thus providing adequate absorbency for night diapering.

The features of my invention which yI believe to be novel are set forthwith particularity in the appended Iclaims. My invention itself,however, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may bestbe understood by reference to the following description taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a planview of an unfolded, tted, contour type diaper; Fig. 2 is a .plan viewof the diaper of Fig. 1 in its folded position, with` the edgesfastened; Fig. 3 is a plan view of an unfolded trapezoidal diaper havingthe fastening means fixed to tabs secured to the side edges of thediaper; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the diaper of Fig. 3 in foldedposition, with the edges fastened; Fig. 5 is a section view taken alongline 5--5 of Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a plan view of an unfolded rectangulardiaper having tie string fastening means on the side edges; Fig. 7 is aplan view of the diaper of Fig.. 6 in folded position, with its sideedges secured together; Fig. 8 is a plan view of the trapezoidal diaperof Fig. 3; Fig. 9 is a plan view of the diaper of Fig. 8 in foldedposition, with the side edges secured together; Fig. 10 is a plan viewof another Iunfolded contour type diaper; Fig. 11 is a plan view of thediaper of Fig. 10 in its folded position, with the edges fastened; Fig.l12 is a plan view of another contour ty-pe diaper in vfolded position;Fig. 13 is a plan View of the diaper of Fig. 12 as secured in use; Fig.14 is a plan View of another unfolded contour type diaper; Fig. 15` is aplan view of the diaper of Fig. 14 in its folded position; Fig. 16V is asection View taken along line 16--16 of Fig. l5; Fig. 17 is a .plan Viewof another unfolded contour type diaper; and Fig. 18 is aA plan view ofthe diaper of Fig. 17 in folded position.

Referring now to the drawings, there are shown sev-v eral conventionaldiapers of various configurations in which my invention has beenincorporated. `ln Figs. 1- and 2, for example, there is shown aconventional fitted, contour type diaper 1 having a top or seat portion10l adapted to cover the lower back and sides of the infant, a bottomportion 11 adapted to cover the abdomen of the infant and sides 12 and13 which. pass between the infants legs. yIf desired, an extra thicknessof materia-l may be included at the body 14 of the diaper in order toachieve additional absorbency. To prepare the diaper for applicationaccording to my method, the central portion of the side edges arelongitudinally folded in wallet fashion at 12b and 13b respectively, so`as to extend in- Lwardly over the body 14 of the diaper 1.. top portion10 and bottom portion 11 unfolded the diaper assumes the configurationof an airplane with the folded edges 12b and 13b forming a fuselagebetween the wings or seat portion 10 and the tail section orVabdomen-covering portion 11. While the folded edges 12b and 13b areillustrated as being parallel, they may if desired converge toward thebottom portion 11 of the diaper. When the side edges 12 and 13 arefolded in this manner over the body 14 of the diaper, there is presenteda crotch covering portion of reduced width having a double materialthickness. My airplane fold additionally :presents a natural pocket 15between the infolded side edges 12 and 13 and the seat or back coveringportion of the body 14 of the diaper. When the diaper is applied, thepocket 15 is presented to the rectal area of the baby with only theoutwardly turned portions 12a and 13a of the side edges snuglycontacting the infant in that region, thus providing a loose fittingreceptacle for waste. `It is obvious that since the body 14 of thediaper is spaced by the outwardly turned portions 12a and` 13a of theside edges from the babys rectal area, the infants bowel movements areless strained and subsequent cleaning of both the diaper and the babyare facilitated. lt is further apparent that the `pocket 15 is readilyadaptable for the reception of With the to facilitate folding the diaperto airplane contiguration and to retain the shape and, hence, theutilitarian function of the waste pocket 15. By'way of illustration, Ihave shown, on myV improved diaper, several embodiments of suchfastening means, all of which are part of my generic inventive concept.In the embodiment shown in Figs. l and 2, the fastening means 16, 17 aresecured directly to the face of the diaper immediately adjacent to theside edges 12 and 13 and intermediate the top and the bottom 11 tosecure the central portions of the side edges together to properly formthe Waste trap or pocket 15. The fastening device 16, 17 may be, forexample, a button, a releasable snap, a hook and eye assembly or anyother conventional fastener.

Referring next to Figs. 3 to 5, there is shown a conventional diaper 2of trapezoidal configuration, in which my invention has beenincorporated, having a seat portion 20, front portion 21 and side edges22 and 23.

` When the diaper 2 is folded, as shown in Fig. 4, the intermediateportions of the side edges 22 and 23 are folded toward each other innear abutting relationship to present the pocket 25 for the reception ofwaste or additional padding, as well as extra absorbent areas 22a, 23aof a double thickness of material. To releasably secure the side edges22 and 23 in this pocket-,forming position, a modiiied form of fasteningmeans are provided. Cooperating fastening means 26, such as are used inthe embodiment of Figs. 1 and 2, for example, are fixedly secured to anarrow strip of relatively strong material which is subsequently cut toshort lengths and folded over to form tabs 27 of double thickness. Theends of these tabs are then sewn into the side edges 22 and 23 of thediaper 2 as shown in Fig. 5. Securing means 26a are used to mount thefasteners 26 through only the bottom layer or thickness 27a of the tabso that the top layer 27b covers any otherwise exposed portion of thesecuring means 26a. As thus applied, when the snaps or fasteners 26 aresecured together they are completely covered so that no metal touchesthe babys skin when the diaper is applied. The tabs 27 are preferablymade of a fine Weave material such as broadcloth, having a relativelyhigh tensile strength. It is understood, of course, while this is apreferred means of attaching the fasteners 26, either or both of thecooperating parts of the fastener may, if desired, be applied to asingle thickness unfolded tab.

In the modification shown in Figs. 8 and 9, a similar trapezoidal diaper2 is illustrated having tabs 28 and 29 of a single thickness of materialsecured to the side edges 23 and 22 respectively. The tab 29, to whichis secured one of the cooperating members 26 of the fasten ing device,is folded over and is secured, as by sewing, to the upper surface 24 ofthe diaper 2. In that way when the diaper is folded as shown in Fig. 9,the side edges 22 and 23 meet in abutting relationship with the tab 28extending under the opposite side portion 22a so that the cooperatingparts of the fastening means 26 are not exposed. Again, as in previousmodifications, a pocket 25a is formed between the seat portion of body24 of the diaper and the intermediate side portions 22a, 23a so as toprovide a receptacle for bowel waste or for a pad for night diapering.It is understood, of course, that the other tab 28 may be folded underand secured to the under surface of the diaper if it is desired to havethe side edges overlap.

In the modification shown in Figs. 6 and 7, a conventional rectangulardiaper 3 is shown having a top portion 30, bottom portion 31 and sideedges 32 and 33. Secured to the side edges 32 and 33 intermediate theends thereof, are tie strings 35 and 36. When the side edges 32 and 33are folded inwardly at their intermediate portions and opposing tiestrings 35 and 36 are interconnected, a pocket 37 is formed between thebody 34 0f the diaper and the side portions 32a, 33a. Again, the sideedges 32 and 33 meet in abutting, or slightly overlapping, relation toform a double thickness of material at the crotch portion for additionalabsorbency.

In the modication shown in Figs. l0 and 11, there is a conventionalfitted diaper 1 having a top or seat portion 10, a bottom portion 11 andside edges 12 and 13. Spaced inwardly from each side edge, intermediatethe ends thereof, is one element 18 of a releasable snap fastener. Theother element 18a of each snap fastener is secured to the face 14 of thediaper so that the intermediate side portions of the diaper are secureddirectly to the face of the diaper to form the Waste pocket 15a. Withthe snap fasteners spaced from the side edges 12 and 13, the side edgesmay be folded back as shown in Fig. 1l to cover any exposed portion ofthe snap fastener.

In Figs. 12 and 13, there is illustrated a diaper already prepared as byany of the previously described means, to form the outline of anairplane. To each end of the waist band forming top portion 10, I securea row of female snap fasteners 19, three being used in the illustration.To engage the female snap fasteners 19, I provide two parallel rows ofmale snap fasteners 19a secured to the abdomen covering portion of thediaper and extending parallel to the folded edges 12b and 13b. With thesnap fasteners thus disposed, when the abdomen covering portion 11 isfolded upwardly (Fig. 13) as when being applied to the baby, any one ofthe female snap fasteners at each end of the top portion 10 may beselectively engaged with any one male snap fasteners in the adjacent rowto adjust both the length of the waist band and the length of theabdomen covering portion. It is to be understood that the parallel rowsof male fasteners 19a are secured close enough to the vertical centerline of the diaper to be within the fuselage portion of the prepareddiaper and are, therefore, particularly adaptable for my airplane foldeddiaper. The parallel rows additionally function as a guide to aid aperson in properly preparing that fold.

In Figs. 14. to 16, there is illustrated a further modification, inwhich only two buttons are required to cooperatively engage a selectedcombination of button holes to both prepare the airplane fold andadjustably 't the diaper on an infant. Buttons 41 are secured to theopposite corners on the outer surface of the abdomen covering portion ofthe diaper. Side edges 12 and 13 of the diaper are first folded backover the outer surface of the diaper so that buttons 41 engage theadjacent button holes 42 and then folded inwardly over the inner surfaceof the diaper. This presents a prepared diaper of airplane configurationhaving an extra absorbent fuselage or crotch covering area and the wastepocket as in previous embodiments. In applying the diaper to an infant,the abdomen covering portion 11 is merely folded up to form a waist bandwith the back covering portion 10. The buttons 41 may be selectivelyengaged with any button hole 44 at opposite ends of the back-coveringportion in order to adjust the length of the waist band.

In the modiiication of Figs. 17 and 18, I provide interlooped tiestrings 45' secured adjacent to the intermediate portions of side edges12 and 13. To apply the diaper, the loops 45 are pulled across the faceof the diaper to automatically form the airplane fold with a Wastepocket 15b. When applying the diaper to an infant the loops are twistedaround buttons 46 secured to the back portion 11 may be folded over uponitself so that the front portion of the waistband will be fastened belowthe infants stomach to avoid spreading harmful moisture to innocentareas and to eifect increased comfort, particularly after feeding. Asthe baby grows, this abdomen covering portion 11 may be graduallyunfolded to full size thus providing extreme flexibility in use. In thisway, the diaper will grow with the baby and may be used as trainingpants until the baby is two or three years old. When applied to thebaby, the soft, rolled side edges 12b and 13b form the leg holes for thebaby, the relatively narrow width of the crotch portion providing eXtraprotection without bull(` enough to bow the babys leg and affording agreat amount of freedom of movement. Only the outwardly turned portions12a and 13a of the side edges snugly contact the infants buttocks, andthe seat covering portion of the body 14 of the diaper is not in closecontact with the infants rectal area. As thus applied, the pocket 17presents a balloon-type seat for the reception of waste or additionalpadding, as heretofore described, without binding or otherwisediscomforting the infant. The diapers of Figs. 3 to 18 are applied in asimilar manner and with concomitant advantage.

While the present invention has been described by reference to theparticular modiiications illustrated, it will be understood that thoseskilled in the art may make further modiiications, therefore, Icontemplate that the appended claims cover any such modiiications asfall within the true spirit and scope of my invention.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A diaper garment formed from a length of absorbent materialcomprising a top portion of a single thickness of said material adaptedto be encircled about the back and sides of an infant, a bottomportionadapted to cover r the abdomen of the infant, and an intermediatecrotch portion of reduced width, areas of said crotch portion havingmore than one thickness of said material formed by the intermediateportions only of the opposing side edges of said length of materialbeing folded inwardly over the face of said material to form a pockettherewith, said side edges being continuous and adapted to contact andencircle throughout substantially their entire length the infants legs.

2. A folded diaper as defined in claim 1 including fastening meanscarried by the intermediate portions of said side edges, said fasteningmeans being interconnected to positively secure said side edges inpocket forming position.

3. A diaper garment for infants comprising a body of sheet materialhaving an unfolded top back waistband portion, a bottom abdomen coveringpor-tion and opposing side edges extending between said waistbandportion and said abdomen covering portion, each of said side edges beingadapted to encircle an infants leg, a portion of said side edges spacedfrom said waistband por tion being folded inwardly over the face of saidmaterial to form a pocket therewith, and releasable fastening means forsecuring oniy the folded portions of said side edges over the face ofsaid material.

4. A diaper garment for infants comprising a body of sheet materialhaving an unfolded top back waistband portion, a bottom abdomen coveringportion and opposing side edges extending between said back waistbandportion and said abdomen covering portion, each of said side edges beingcontinuous and adapted to encircle an infants leg, a portion of saidside edges spaced from said waistband portion being folded inwardly overthe face of said material to form a pocket therewith.

References Cited in the iile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS i1,865,541 Reynolds July 5, 1932 2,122,417 Fridolph July 5, 19382,256,510 Young Sept. 23, 1941 2,347,867 Alban May 2, 1944 2,556,800Donovan June 12, 1951 2,657,689 Kay Nov. 3, 1953 2,685,879 Emmet Aug.10, 1954 2,718,888 Meroney Sept. 27, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 471,560 FranceJuly 15, 1914

